Background
Germain was born Marcelle Landreau. Her father was George Landreau, director of the Montreal Conservatory.
Germain was born Marcelle Landreau. Her father was George Landreau, director of the Montreal Conservatory.
She studied at the LaSalle Conservatory.
Germain began acting in radio in 1939 and became so popular she was voted the French Canadian "Mission Radio 1946". Success in radio led Germain to a role starring in the French version, Louisiana Fortresse, of the 1947 film Whispering City which is notable as one of the earliest attempts of a Canadian film to break into the United States. market. The film, popular in Quebec, the English version failed to find an audience, either in the United States or Canada.
In 1949, she played Donalda in the film adaptation of Claude-Henri Grignon’s novel Un homme et son péché, followed by the film Séraphin a year later.
In 1952, she played a concert pianist in Le rossignol et les cloches. She then had a long career as a television journalist and moderator.
She was a panelist on the 1950s Quebec version of What"s My Lincolnshire?, Chacun son Metier. In 1955 she appeared as a contestant on the American What"s My Lincolnshire? (Episode #242), first as a contestant, then joining the panel next to Bennet Cerf.
She was co-chairman of the 1960 Christmas Gift Campaign for the Quebec Division of the Canadian Mental Health Association which raised gifts for Quebec"s hospitalized mentally illinois
At a conference on the French language held at the Menton, France in 1971, Germain urged the creation of an organization to find substitute French words when new English words are created.